diff --git a/README.md b/README.md index a4883c0..7bfa7a5 100644 --- a/README.md +++ b/README.md @@ -1,3 +1,3 @@ # void -Zettlelkasten \ No newline at end of file +Zettelkasten \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/notes/khdraft.pdf b/notes/khdraft.pdf new file mode 100644 index 0000000..9cab9fc Binary files /dev/null and b/notes/khdraft.pdf differ diff --git a/notes/knoledge-hydrant.md b/notes/knoledge-hydrant.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..cffed2e --- /dev/null +++ b/notes/knoledge-hydrant.md @@ -0,0 +1,381 @@ +# Knowledge Hydrant + + +* [Knowledge Hydrant](#knowledge-hydrant) + * [Introduction](#introduction) + * [Concepts](#concepts) + * [Summary](#summary) + * [1. SPIRIT](#1-spirit) + * [2. ATMOSPHERE](#2-atmosphere) + * [3. ROLES](#3-roles) + * [4. CUSTOMS](#4-customs) + * [1. Spirit](#1-spirit-1) + * [1.1 Knowledge Hydrant](#11-knowledge-hydrant) + * [1.2 Pool of Insight](#12-pool-of-insight) + * [1.3 SAFE PLACE](#13-safe-place) + * [1.4 ENDURING ENERGY](#14-enduring-energy) + * [Frequent Meetings](#frequent-meetings) + * [Hour Meetings](#hour-meetings) + * [Short Breaks](#short-breaks) + * [1.5 KINDRED COLLABORATORS](#15-kindred-collaborators) + * [2. ATMOSPHERE](#2-atmosphere-1) + * [2.1 COMMON GROUND](#21-common-ground) + * [2.2 PUBLIC LIVING ROOM](#22-public-living-room) + * [2.3 INTIMATE CIRCLE](#23-intimate-circle) + * [2.4 VIRTUAL SPACE](#24-virtual-space) + * [3. ROLES](#3-roles-1) + * [3.1 ENTHUSIASTIC LEADER](#31-enthusiastic-leader) + * [3.2 MOTIVATED MODERATOR](#32-motivated-moderator) + * [3.3 ACTIVE PARTICIPANT](#33-active-participant) + * [3.4 PREPARED PARTICIPANT](#34-prepared-participant) + * [3.5 DISTINGUISHED PARTICIPANT](#35-distinguished-participant) + * [4. CUSTOMS](#4-customs-1) + * [4.1 OPENING QUESTION](#41-opening-question) + * [4.2 SEQUENTIAL STUDY](#42-sequential-study) + * [4.3 AGENDA](#43-agenda) + * [4.4 SUBGROUP](#44-subgroup) + * [4.5 STUDY CYCLE](#45-study-cycle) + * [4.6 DISTRIBUTED DIARY](#46-distributed-diary) + * [4.7 AFTER HOURS](#47-after-hours) + + +## Introduction + +A study group can make a difficult book easier to understand, it can succeed +where an unsatisfying class fails, and it can support you if your environment +doesn't support your ongoing learning and growth. + +A study group is a collection of individuals who meet regularly to improve +their understanding of some non-trivial subject, like a body of great literature, +by participating in dialogue. + +The authors and architects of the original pattern language understood that +individuals vary in how they obtain knowledge. Some don’t have a lot of time +and want to gain knowledge as fast as possible. Others prefer to extract as +much knowledge as they can by pondering a work’s every paragraph and +page. Still others prefer to study a work’s visual elements–its photographs +and sketches–before diving into the words. + +There are 21 patterns in this pattern language. They are grouped into four +sections called Spirit, Atmosphere, Roles, and Customs. As you study the +patterns from each section, consider the structure of this language: **the +patterns from the Spirit section, at the beginning of the language, help to +define the study group's core, its spirit of learning. The patterns that follow +this section, in Atmosphere, Roles and Customs, are all intimately tied to the +earliest core patterns and serve to re-enforce them**. + +## Concepts + +| Concept | Meaning | +|--------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------| +| [Great] Literature | Piece of information in it's original form, un-destiled, no summarized, etc. | + + +## Summary + +### 1. SPIRIT + +_After identifying a great source of knowledge in a subject, work to create a +rewarding, intellectually safe environment for the study of that subject._ + +1. KNOWLEDGE HYDRANT +2. POOL OF INSIGHT +3. SAFE PLACE +4. ENDURING ENERGY +5. KINDRED COLLABORATORS + +### 2. ATMOSPHERE + +_Establish a home for the study group that is centrally located, comfortable, +aesthetically pleasing, and conducive to dialogue._ + +1. COMMON GROUND +2. PUBLIC LIVING ROOM +3. INTIMATE CIRCLE +4. VIRTUAL SPACE + +### 3. ROLES + +_Lead and energize the group, come prepared, and help guide dialogues so +that they are insightful and productive._ + +1. ENTHUSIASTIC LEADER +2. MOTIVATED MODERATOR +3. ACTIVE PARTICIPANT +4. PREPARED PARTICIPANT +5. DISTINGUISHED PARTICIPANT + +### 4. CUSTOMS + +_Follow customs that will re-enforce the spirit of the group, piquing +participant's interest in dialogues, accommodating different learning levels, +making the study of literature easier, recording group experiences, and +drawing people closer together._ + +1. OPENING QUESTION +2. SEQUENTIAL STUDY +3. AGENDA +4. SUBGROUP +5. STUDY CYCLE +6. DISTRIBUTED DIARY +7. AFTER HOURS + +## 1. Spirit + +### 1.1 Knowledge Hydrant + +> . . . where can one obtain knowledge in its fullest, unfiltered, unsimplified, form? + +This ignorance about great literature is widespread. It exists today primarily +because several important ideas about great literature have been forgotten. +These include some of the following facts: + +- The hard work put into the study of great literature is worthwhile because +it ensures that people retain the knowledge they wish to obtain +- Great literature is much easier to understand when it is studied in an +intelligent sequence ([4.2 SEQUENTIAL STUDY](#42-sequential-study)) +- It is easier and more rewarding to study great literature with other people ([1.2 POOL OF INSIGHT)](#12-pool-of-insight)) + +**Discover the great literature in your profession or area of +interest—the finest books, articles, and speeches ever +written—and then begin an earnest study of these works.** + +So how do you find the great literature worthy of study? Ask people. Ask +knowledgeable people which authors they like, what are their favorite books, +what profoundly influenced them? + +After identifying the works, form or join a study group ([1.2 POOL OF INSIGHT](#12-pool-of-insight)), order the works +to be studied ([4.2 SEQUENTIAL STUDY](#42-sequential-study)), and compose an [4.3 AGENDA](#43-agenda). + +### 1.2 Pool of Insight + +> . . . once you've discovered your [KNOWLEDGE HYDRANT](#11-knowledge-hydrant), it can be overwhelming to drink from it. This pattern suggests how to make the study +> of great literature easier and more rewarding. + +**To obtain the fullest understanding of great literature--to penetrate its +meaning – it is tremendously helpful to read and study a work on one's own +and then engage in meaningful dialogue on the work with others.** + +In dialogue, people get the chance to learn from themselves and from their +colleagues. In communicating how they understand something, people may: + +- clarify what confused others +- expose their own misunderstandings +- reveal new ideas +- articulate that which they didn't know they knew + +There is a spirit present in dialogues that one doesn't +find in many other learning environments. Frequent meetings help sustain this +spirit. **When a group doesn't meet frequently, it can struggle to keep its +momentum and enthusiasm**; lively subjects and debates can fade between +meetings, and if people miss just one meeting, they will be absent for a very +long period. **Many groups sustain a group's spirit by meeting weekly or +biweekly**. + +Group study also helps motivate people to learn, especially when they are no +longer officially "in school." A reading assignment every week or every other +week can help individuals continue to learn while balancing work and family +life. + +**Read and study literature on one's own, but discuss it with +others in a regular study group. Aim to ask questions about +what you don't know and explain what you do know. Your +exchanges with colleagues will enrich your understanding +immensely.** + +The best study groups are those in which individuals feel comfortable +learning with others ([1.3 SAFE PLACE](#13-safe-place)). + +Atmosphere plays an important role in a dialogue. Some environments +promote dialogues ([2.1 COMMON GROUND](#21-common-ground), [2.2 PUBLIC LIVING ROOM](#22-public-living-room)) +and some don't. + +The most enriching study happens when a group has a [MOTIVATED +MODERATOR](#32-motivated-moderator) and [PREPARED PARTICIPANTS](#34-prepared-participant)... + +### 1.3 SAFE PLACE + +It is so important that a place of learning be a safe place. People need to feel +that they can experiment, or be wrong, for almost everyone becomes +uncomfortable if they fear that anything they say will be harshly criticized. +When places of learning have highly critical or judgmental natures, an +individual's ability to learn can easily be compromised. + +In dialogue, participants must be comfortable to ask questions, even illogical, +overly simple, or silly questions. **It is the group's task to handle such +questions in such a way that individuals aren't stifled, or embarrassed, but +encouraged to continue learning**. + +All participants within a dialogue need to help establish the safe place. +Usually, it is up to the [MOTIVATED MODERATOR](#32-motivated-moderator) to be especially +vigilant. With great diversity in a group-- people who are provocative or +reserved, skeptical or generous, newcomers or veterans --it is very easy for +study group sessions to become unsafe. + +Maintaining a safe place is easier if a group establishes customs. Such +customs can help participants and moderators know what to do when different +types of discord arise + +**Establish a warm, tolerant, polite and focused environment +in which individuals help each other and where everyone is +comfortable to ask questions and make mistakes.** + +### 1.4 ENDURING ENERGY + +> It's fairly easy to start a study group. But keeping it going, +> so that members are active, dialogues are insightful, and the +> group is long-lived, is another matter altogether. + +A study group's energy initially comes from its founder. If the founder is +genuinely interested in creating a thriving, long-lasting [POOL OF INSIGHT](#12-pool-of-insight), +to improve himself and his community, the group will start life with a +powerful energy. But if the founder is merely interested in short-term gains, +or personal recognition, the group will be short-lived. + +#### Frequent Meetings + +It is difficult to maintain any sort of flow, or continuous energy, if a +group doesn't meet very often. When a group is studying a body of +knowledge, a month between meetings is usually far too long for people +to maintain focus and enthusiasm. Therefore, have the group meet +weekly or bi-weekly. **These frequent meetings will allow a group to +study effectively, and may lead some members to become [KINDRED +COLLABORATORS](#15-kindred-collaborators)**. + +#### Hour Meetings + +A one-hour meeting is typically not enough time for a group to have an +insightful dialogue on a piece of literature. But three hours is too much +time, since most participants can't actively engage in dialogue for that +long. Therefore, **limit dialogues to a maximum of 2 hours, and if energy +has waned significantly before that time, finish the meeting early**. + +#### Short Breaks + +At a certain time in a dialogue, a group's intensity, focus and +effectiveness will begin to diminish. If the group doesn't take a break at +this time, the quality of the dialogue may begin to deteriorate, and people +will become uncomfortable. Therefore, **allow for a short (ten or fifteen +minute) break in the middle of a study group session**, to let members +reflect, chat, use the restrooms, and prepare for the next half of the +dialogue. + +Equally important, is a group's meeting quarters, since the location and space +will play a huge role in sustaining a group's energy. People need to be excited +about attending a group. + +**Create study groups out of genuine enthusiasm to study a +subject in-depth. Meet weekly or bi-weekly for two hours, +and have a short break in the middle. Choose a meeting +location where people will enjoy passing time, and study only +those writings which are worthy of the group's attention.** + +### 1.5 KINDRED COLLABORATORS + +Join or form a small group that meets regularly and studies ideas that are +important to you. As you get to know people, valuable, career-enhancing +collaborations will develop. + +## 2. ATMOSPHERE + +### 2.1 COMMON GROUND + +People want to connect with others but aren't willing +to do so in settings that make them feel uncomfortable. Location plays a vital role in the life of a group. + +> Oldenburg's thesis is that people need informal public places +where they can gather, put aside the concerns of work and +home, relax, and talk. Germany's beer gardens, England's +pubs, and French and Viennese cafes created this outlet in +people's lives, providing a neutral ground where all are equal +and conversation is the main activity. + +**Hold public study groups where diverse individuals will all +be on common ground. The best locations are easy for +people to get to, but not too close to their offices or homes.** + +### 2.2 PUBLIC LIVING ROOM + +Great locations for study groups resemble large, comfortable living rooms. There are various types of chairs that may be rearranged, perhaps a sofa and rugs, some lamps or other warm lighting, and windows. When people feel comfortable they forget about themselves and may freely engage in dialogue. + +_Some of the best locations are quiet, aesthetic places that invite reflection_: a centrally located cafe, a spacious gallery or bookstore, a room with a magnificent view, or some nook or corner of a hotel or lodge. + +> Place each sitting space in a position which is protected, not +cut by paths or movements, roughly circular, made so that +the room itself helps suggest the circle - not too strongly - +with paths and activities around it, so that people naturally +gravitate toward the chairs when they get into the mood to +sit. Place the chairs and cushions loosely in the circle, and +have a few too many. + +**Choose a warm, spacious establishment where people will +enjoy mingling before and after study sessions, where there +is comfortable, rearrangeable furniture, plenty of warm lighting, and a variety of foods and drinks.** + +### 2.3 INTIMATE CIRCLE + +**Awkward seating arrangements alienate people and thwart a +group's ability to work together. The best configurations +allow participants to easily see and hear each other. Yet +many establishments don't provide either the furniture or +space to make this happen, or don't let groups rearrange the +furniture.** + +> ...**people will feel oppressed, both when they are either +working in an undifferentiated mass of workers and when +they are forced to work in isolation**. The small group +achieves a nice balance between the one extreme in which +there are so many people, that there is no opportunity for an +intimate social structure to develop, and the other extreme in +which there are so few, that the possibility of social groups +does not occur at all. +... +In our own survey of attitudes towards workspace -- taken +among workers at the Berkeley City Hall -- **we found that +people prefer to be part of a group that ranges from two to +eight.** When there are more than eight, people lose touch +with the group as a human gathering. + +**Choose a location with ample room, many tables and chairs, +and the freedom to rearrange the spaces to form rough +circles or ovals that may dynamically expand or contract.** + +### 2.4 VIRTUAL SPACE + +**Without an online presence, a study group will lack a cost-effective way of advertising its existence, organizing events, +staying connected and attracting new members.** + +The trick to building a good site, is to avoid loading the site with too much +content that will regularly change, and to enlist the group's participants to +maintain the content that will need routine updating. + +If the study group keeps a [DISTRIBUTED DIARY](#46-distributed-diary) or provides feedback +to authors, it is a good idea to post this material to the site, for the edification +of group members, and to foster online dialogue. For conducting such +dialogues, a simple, group email server or service (such as eGroups) is useful. +[AGENDA](#43-agenda) are particularly helpful for members and non-members of a +group and are therefore best placed on the site. A good agenda will span +several months, giving people the chance to plan their schedules and study +readings prior to group meetings ([3.4 PREPARED PARTICIPANT](#34-prepared-participant)). + +**Establish an online presence where the study group's +mission, activities, and [DISTRIBUTED DIARIES](#46-distributed-diary) are posted, where members may continue dialogues, or chat, and where prospective members may learn more about the +group.** + +## 3. ROLES + +### 3.1 ENTHUSIASTIC LEADER +### 3.2 MOTIVATED MODERATOR +### 3.3 ACTIVE PARTICIPANT +### 3.4 PREPARED PARTICIPANT +### 3.5 DISTINGUISHED PARTICIPANT + +## 4. CUSTOMS + +### 4.1 OPENING QUESTION +### 4.2 SEQUENTIAL STUDY +### 4.3 AGENDA +### 4.4 SUBGROUP +### 4.5 STUDY CYCLE +### 4.6 DISTRIBUTED DIARY +### 4.7 AFTER HOURS